Fiberglass is a rigid composite structural material having reinforcement fibers embedded in a resinous material. Structures formed from fiberglass advantageously have inherently high structural strength while also being relatively low in overall weight. Accordingly, fiberglass structures are used in flight vehicles, as well as a variety of terrestrial vehicles, such as automobiles and boats.
With respect to fiberglass structures used in flight vehicles, the fiberglass structures may be employed in the fabrication of primary or secondary structures, but are particularly useful in the fabrication of secondary structural components that are not subject to primary flight loads.
One drawback associated with the use of conventional fiberglass materials in primary and/or secondary structural applications is that the material is generally formed into relatively thick layers in order to offer good resistance to damage that may result from hail and/or relatively heavy rain that may impact the fiberglass component. As a consequence, the relatively thick fiberglass layers often undesirably add weight to the vehicle.
Therefore, there exists an unmet need in the art for a structural material having higher resistance to impact damage while providing lower weight than heretofore possible.